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The upcoming Toto Hong Bao Draw on Feb. 11 has snowballed to S$16 million after no winner emerged from the Feb. 7 draw.

The prize stood at S$12 million initially.

And that can only mean one thing: Super long queues are sprouting up all over the island as punters dream of becoming millionaires.

Popular Singapore Pools outlet

Over at one super popular Singapore Pools outlet at Block 685 Hougang Street 61, a mind-boggling long queue has formed two days before the draw.

The queue was at least 200m, and extended to the void deck of a nearby block.

Punters were seen carrying umbrellas and waiting in the drizzle for their chance to get their betting slips processed.

Here is a look at the queue:

Here is a closer look at the snaking queue:

Popular Hougang Singapore Pools outlet

But this is no ordinary Singapore Pools outlet if you were to ask seasoned punters.

Tong Aik Huat is the Singapore Pools outlet to go to as it has yielded 12 Group 1 prize winners and 81 Group 2 prize winners in the last 24 years since records were kept.

This frequency of Group 1 prize winners buying winning tickets from this particular outlet is one of the highest in Singapore, second only to the outlet located in Fu Lu Shou Complex in Bugis, where 13 Group 1 prize winning tickets have been dispensed.

These winning streaks have unwittingly given these outlets a halo effect, where punters believe they can increase their chances by staking their wager at these shops.

Is it true that the Hougang Street 61 outlet is luckier?

The apparent success rate of producing Group 1 and 2 winners at a particular Singapore Pools outlet can be explained mathematically.

Firstly, distribution of winners is never even.

As a result of some outlets appearing luckier after multiple rounds, they will attract more punters.

With more punters choosing those seeming luckier outlets to place their bets, with some even going out of their way to do so, the outlets with more punters will produce even more winners over time and the effect compounds.

This is a positive feedback loop effect, or Matthew Effect, at work.

If information on the total number of tickets were to be provided, the perception of some outlets being luckier than others can be more easily debunked.

Online betting producing even more winners

A note on the official Singapore Pools website reminds punters that statistics it has put up are meant to provide information, and not meant to intuit what numbers to choose and where to place their bets.

It said: "Statistics are provided for information purposes only. Every number has an equal chance of being drawn, regardless of where the ticket is purchased."

Moreover, with online betting becoming the norm and the Singapore Pools website utilised more frequently as the go-to venue to place Toto bets over the last several years, the Singapore Pools Account Betting Service has emerged as the top platform to produce the most Group 1 and 2 winners.

All media by Fiona Tan

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